Photo courtesy of Nintendo.
Recent releases in The Legend of Zelda series, “Breath of the Wild” and “Tears of the Kingdom,” are praised for their open-world exploration. This is largely due to the series featuring primarily linear exploration after the release of “A Link to the Past” in 1991. However, the shift from linear exploration to open-world didn’t happen overnight. It started with an indirect sequel to “A Link to the Past” released on the Nintendo 3DS.
Released in 2013, “The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds” initially seemed to be another HD remake of an old title from the “Zelda” series, similar to “Ocarina of Time 3D”.
Instead, “A Link Between Worlds” took the best parts of “A Link to the Past” and improved them, while also introducing new ideas to the franchise.
The game opens with Link being woken up to deliver a sword to the Captain at Hyrule Castle. Through a series of events, Link encounters Yuga, one of the main antagonists, who turns a descendant of one of the Seven Sages into a painting.
Link is knocked out by Yuga, subsequently being revived by a merchant wearing a rabbit costume named Ravio. It is at this point in the game that a major change from “A Link to the Past” becomes apparent.
No longer are items found in relevant dungeons — they are rented and bought from Ravio. Renting items costs far less than buying; however, you lose rented items when you die, requiring you to pay another fee to rent them again.
Once an item is bought from Ravio, it is in your inventory for the rest of the game, with each item being necessary to solve puzzles in the game’s dungeons.
After receiving a bracelet from Ravio and speaking with Zelda, Link is tasked with collecting three pendants from dungeons across Hyrule in order to obtain the Master Sword. As Link collects the pendants, he has another encounter with Yuga, who turns Link into a painting.
However, Ravio’s bracelet reacts and frees Link from the painting, also giving Link the ability to merge into walls. This was not a feature present in the original game and helps immensely with setting “A Link Between Worlds” apart from “A Link to the Past.”
Once Link obtains the Master Sword, he visits Zelda — only to find her being captured by Yuga. Yuga escapes through a dimensional crack in the wall leading to Lorule, this game’s expanded version of the Dark World from “A Link to the Past.”
These dimensional cracks replace warp panels and are a direct improvement as they can be accessed by Link’s newfound ability to merge with walls.
Now in Lorule, Link watches as Yuga uses the paintings of the captured Seven Sages to resurrect Ganon. Yuga then merges with Ganon before being trapped by Lorule’s princess Hilda — a mirror version of Zelda.
Hilda sends Link out into Lorule to release the Seven Sages from the paintings they are trapped in, which are now scattered into dungeons across the kingdom. The player has the option to complete these dungeons in any order they please, a noticeable departure from the often linear dungeons of prior games.
As Link completes dungeons, the player is shown pieces of the plot incrementally, revealed through visions of Hilda speaking to the painting of Zelda in Lorule castle.
Once the Seven Sages are freed from the dungeons, Link is bestowed with the Triforce of Courage. Link returns to Lorule Castle only to be betrayed by Hilda, who attempts to steal Link’s piece of the Triforce from him so Lorule can once again have a Triforce. In the ensuing confrontation, Hilda is absorbed by Yuga before Link ultimately defeats him, freeing Hilda.
Ravio, who turns out to be Lorule’s Link, comes rushing in to console Hilda and send Link and Zelda on their way back to Hyrule following the battle. The main story ends with Link and Zelda using their wish with the completed Triforce to restore Lorule’s Triforce.
At this point, there are a few options for the player. Hero Mode, a harder version of the game, is unlocked after completing the main story on any save file of the game. The player can also repeat the final battle with Yuga once they’ve completed the main story. There are also many minigames scattered throughout the kingdoms, such as the Treacherous Tower, Cucco Ranch and Octoball Derby.
There are 100 collectible creatures scattered across both dimensions called Maiamai. For every ten you find and bring to Mother Maiamai, she’ll upgrade one of the items in your inventory that you’ve bought from Ravio.
“A Link Between Worlds” is an interesting entry in the series, as it’s a remake that also functions as a stand-alone game. It’s much harder to go back and play it now because of the newer releases in the series continuing to improve their graphics, storytelling and open-world exploration.
However, this game is hands-down the best 2D Zelda game and is worth replaying even as new entries in the series are released. Unlike modern entries, “A Link Between Worlds” has a much gentler learning curve in terms of game mechanics, and is an immensely pleasant experience from start to finish.
It’s a must-play for beginners and long-time fans of the series alike.
.jpg)
